The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf
The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf |
| Posted: 29 Mar 2013 04:49 PM PDT The Little Book That Still Saves Your Assets The author describes the practical principles behind the process of managing your money in today's challenging investment climate. He stresses the substantial investment returns that the right mix of stocks, bonds, cash, gold, real estate, commodities and other assets can bring to your portfolio. He also explains how to adjust your asset allocation model for today's market. The Art of Being Brilliant A book about life, growing up, relationships and how our thought life can land us into trouble. A compilation of case studies, other people's life experiences, quotes and questions for young adults who are about to enter the job market. Written in a fun and engaging way with pictures and quote bubbles. American Turnaround: Reinventing AT&T and GM Having run two of America's corporations, AT&T and GM, Ed Whitacre delves into his years at the telecommunications company and how he was called out of retirement to head GM in 2009. He writes about people and events who have shaped and influenced his career and life. |
| Posted: 29 Mar 2013 04:46 PM PDT Mean Girls at Work: How to stay professional when things get personal The female of the species is more deadly than the male – British author and poet Rudyard Kipling Well-behaved women seldom make history – Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, professor at Harvard University I'm tough, I'm ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay – Madonna, singer and eighties pop-culture icon BITCHES. It's a strong word but it does the job. In the workplace, bitches are hell if they've got it in for you. Conversely, they're good value if they're on your side, at least until they do a "switcheroo" – and you can count on that happening sooner rather than later. But friend or foe or "frememy", the office bitch has a uncanny ability to get ahead in the company hierarchy, so ignore her at your peril. Psychotherapist-consultant team and co-authors of 2006's excellent Working with You Is Killing Me (among other bestsellers) Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster use a gentler term for them – Mean Girls – and provide gradations of different kinds of bitch, from Meanest of the Mean to Doesn't Know She's Mean. Their book is a treatment of the phenomena from a defensive position. It's packed with good advice – much of it painfully obvious – and is penned in a shrill but engaging tone, that's what makes this a useful read for surviving the office jungle, where mean girls stalk and glower at their tender prey – the unassertive and easily intimidated. There is a brief description of each type of mean girl, followed by a typical bitchy behavioural trait this form of mean girl might indulge in. Some of these moves and acts of malice seem a little adolescent, but – let's face it – the office does bring out the nasty teen or awkward youth in many of us. No wonder bullies thrive in this milieu. After the vignette of characteristic pettiness from each meanie, there is a section entitled "How You Feel" that projects how you might react inside to such an encounter; angry and/or upset and/or resentful – the How You Feels do get a tad repetitive. This is followed by the self-evident section "Don't Go There", which is useful, but again rather repetitive. And then the co-authors pile on the agony with "Go Here", which provides a range of helpful and sensible-sounding and screamingly obvious advice, all penned with warmth and tender loving care, and enough repetition to make those eyelids feel a bit heavy all of a sudden. I wish the authors had conceded that sometimes you just have to fight fire with fire, but Crowley and Elster are nice girls, to a fault. Again, the advice is nearly always identical and predictable. Tips proffered include "be professional and assertive", and the rather more useful "If you need to talk about it, talk to someone who does not have a connection to your work". No advice though on how to work through the rage of wanting to shove your line manager's face into her al-desko microwaved curry-rice lunch, when she's off her guard, but this book is a bit thin on detail. Nevertheless, the authors address all-too-real issues that are eschewed in broader treatments of office politics. Given constructive parameters women work well together, the authors explain, especially if mindful of the destructive potential of succumbing to what they call the "dark side of woman-to-woman relationships". The long march to all-most equality in the workplace – particularly in Malaysia's commendably inclusive white-collar labour force – is an enduring achievement that requires "solidarity among sisters", not the kind of office Darwinism that drags down overall morale and sets up vulnerable-though-useful employees to be victims. The tone of this book is generally light and breezy, but the subject matter is anything but. The Meanest Of The Mean is not the office asset she thinks she is, simply an insecure individual who knows how to hurt and underine her co-workers. Nobody needs one of them pushing down productivity and blocking out the sunlight in the office. As for the lower-ranking mean girls – Passively Mean, Doesn't Know She's Mean, Doesn't Mean To Be Mean – well, that covers the overwhelming majority of meanies, and one must be vigilant against them too. Thankfully this book gives to reader the appropriate defensive weapons. Thwarting a meanie: ● Don't take her bait – When a mean girl attacks, she's looking for a reaction from you. If she attacks you in a meeting, she'll want to see you angry or crying or otherwise upset. Getting a reaction from you gratifies the mean side of her. ● Don't believe that what she says is true – This rule is especially important when dealing with a mean girl who likes to gossip and spread rumours. If she comes to you with gossip, don't get drawn in. ● Don't engage in negative speak about her – Why? Because you're fuelling the power struggle between the two of you. And you may end up looking like the pettier person. ● Be friendly without being friends – If you discover that one of your colleagues acts in ways you don't like, you don't have to shut her out. Rather, you can maintain a cordial relationship with her where you only discuss the work at hand. ● Aim for professional behaviour at all times – We call this taking the High Road. Acting professional towards all women in your workplace – regardless of how you feel about them – is a key component of "winning" with mean girls. ● Keep communication short and to the point – Aim for short, focused interactions with this woman where you only discuss essential work-related topics. Think, "Proper inter-office communication – no more, no less." ● Find a safe person to confide in – It's best to find a confidante outside of the office setting who can hear your story and offer solid advice. Biodata Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster are the co-authors of Working For You Isn't Working For Me and the bestselling co-authors of the global bestseller Working With You Is Killing Me. Crowley is a Harvard-trained psychotherapist. Her expertise concerns the "inside of business"; the psychological and interpersonal challenges that are generated by people working together. Crowley helps individuals overcome their emotional obstacles to success. Elster is an executive coach and business strategist of national renown across the US. She specialises in the outside issues involved in business building. Elster's expertise covers most HR issues especially staff development and management training. Their company is K Squared Enterprises, and since 1989, they've combined their expertise to develop synergies and a unique method for dealing with difficult people and challenging conditions in the workplace. Bestselling authors, educators, public speakers and executive coaches, Crowley and Elster are experts in the area of professional fulfillment through self-awareness and self-management. With their media profile rising, they have appeared on Good Morning America, CNN, The Today Show, Good Day NY and many radio shows. Together they've also written Working for You isn't Working for Me, Working with You is Killing Me. |
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